As soon as teammate AJ Allmendinger was suspended for a positive drug test last weekend, Sam Hornish Jr. was quick to let team owner Roger Penske know that he would like to replace Allmendinger.

For the rest of the season, if needed.

Sam Hornish Jr. is ready to go as long as AJ Allmendinger is suspended. (AP Photo)

Allmendinger was suspended Saturday afternoon and Hornish replaced him in the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona Saturday night. On Sunday morning, Hornish texted Penske to let him know he would like to drive Allmendinger’s No. 22 car for the rest of the season if his drug suspension is not overturned, ESPN.com reported.

"This is definitely not the way that I would like to do it," Hornish told ESPN.com. "But at the end of the day, I feel like with the way things have been in racing lately, I feel like you take what you can get at this point and time."

Hornish, who drives for Penske’s Nationwide Series team, was adamant that he was not being disrespectful to Allmendinger, whose contract is up after this season.

"I don't see how anybody could blame me for wanting that opportunity if it becomes available," Hornish told ESPN.com. "I'm not going to push to make anything happen, but I definitely wanted to let them know that I was interested in it and available to do it if they had the need for me to."

Allmendinger was suspended temporarily for failing a random drug test administered on June 29 at Kentucky Speedway. He has requested a test of his B sample, and if that comes back positive, he could be suspended indefinitely while he goes through a NASCAR recovery program.

Penske Racing already has named Hornish to drive for the team this weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

Hornish, a three-time IndyCar Series champion, drove in the Cup series for Penske from 2008-10, but struggled and was moved to the Nationwide Series, where he won his first NASCAR race late last year. He has said he wants to return to the Cup series, and Penske said the goal is for him to return to NASCAR’s top series next season.